HEADLINES

Shelby Harris

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/24/15

October 24th, 2015 at 4:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

Today’s minor NFL signings, cuts and other moves:

  • The Chargers added quarterback Brad Sorensen to their practice squad and jettisoned center/guard Michael Huey from the 10-man outfit to make room, Michael Gehlken of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports (on Twitter). The 27-year-old Sorensen’s spent time with the Chargers and Titans since 2013.
  • To help their thinning cornerback depth, the Saints signed corners Akeem Davis and Sammy Seamster from their practice squad and cut receivers Joe Morgan and T.J. Graham to make room, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports. No. 1 Keenan Lewis will miss another game due to a hip injury, along with an illness, and Damian Swann is also out. In parts of five seasons with the Saints, Morgan has 471 career receiving yards and three TDs. The 2011 undrafted free agent made five starts for the Saints in 2012. Active for two games for New Orleans this season, starting one, Morgan’s been cut three times this year, but Evan Woodberry of NOLA.com notes he or Graham could be brought back next week. The 25-year-old Davis played in 13 games for Washington last season, and the 24-year-old Seamster participated in two for the Dolphins in 2014. Both are set for special teams duty Sunday, Woodberry reports.
  • The Raiders brought up Shelby Harris from their practice squad to bolster defensive line depth, waiving safety Tevin McDonald in a corresponding maneuver, Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com reports. A 2014 seventh-round pick of the Raiders’, Harris has experience at defensive tackle and end and played in one game last season. Oakland defensive fronters Denico Autry and Justin Ellis are out and doubtful for Sunday’s game against the Chargers, respectively, creating the opportunity for Harris. A frequent inhabitant of this space, McDonald will likely return to the Raiders’ practice squad if he clears waivers, Bair reports.
  • Ben Roethlisberger‘s status for Week 7 is leaning more toward out than questionable, with the Steelers promoting quarterback Tyler Murphy from their practice squad, per Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. Roethlisberger’s missed three straight games after going down in Week 3 with a knee injury and enters Sunday’s game against the Chiefs with a questionable designation. Murphy, a 23-year-old undrafted quarterback/wide receiver hybrid out of Boston College who’s been active in two games in 2015, took the scout-team snaps on offense for the Steelers this week and has one catch for 16 yards this season. In the event Roethlisbeger is held out again, Landry Jones will start, per La Canfora, with Michael Vick and Murphy backing him up.
  • In a corresponding move to make room for Murphy, the Steelers placed cornerback Cortez Allen on injured reserve, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com reports (on Twitter). Allen’s been inactive for the Steelers since Week 2 with a knee injury. The 27-year-old ex-fourth-round pick started seven games for Pittsburgh last season and has six career interceptions for the team that drafted him.
  • Brandon LaFell looks set to make his 2015 debut with the Patriots; the team plans to activate the wideout from the PUP list, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (via Twitter). LaFell missed the Pats’ first five games with a lingering foot injury. LaFell recorded 953 receiving yards and seven touchdown receptions in his New England debut last season.
  • The Titans promoted wide receiver Rico Richardson from their practice squad and released veteran backup tight end Chase Coffman to make room, Jim Wyatt of Titans Online reports (on Twitter). Richardson represents the Titans’ fifth wideout, while the team previously was carrying more tight ends — Coffman, Delanie Walker, Anthony Fasano, Phillip Supernaw and Craig Stevens — than receivers. With Harry Douglas out for Week 7 with sore ribs, Tennessee had a need for a healthy receiver, tweets Wyatt. A former Bengals third-round pick, Coffman’s caught just 14 passes in six seasons. The 24-year-old Richardson’s played in just one game — in 2014 with Tennessee.

AFC Practice Squad Updates: 9/7/15

September 7th, 2015 at 6:54pm CST by Luke Adams

While many teams filled up their 10-man practice squads on Sunday, plenty of teams didn’t confirm their moves right away, or kept a few spots open on those units. On top of that, at least one club that signed 10 players to its taxi squad on Sunday has already made several changes, bringing in new players and jettisoning players who didn’t even spend 24 hours on the squad.

We’ll have updates on Monday’s AFC practice squad signings and cuts in this space, with teams listed in alphabetical order. When new moves occur, we’ll bump this post back to the top of the page. Here’s a round-up of today’s moves:

Baltimore Ravens

  • Signed (press release):

    • WR Daniel Brown
    • TE Dominique Jones
    • WR Jeremy Ross

Buffalo Bills

  • Signed (press release):
    • OLB IK Enemkpali
    • T Chris Martin
    • DE Cedric Reed
    • QB Alex Tanney

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

  • Signed (press release):
    • RB Kapri Bibbs
    • TE Arthur Lynch
    • T Kyle Roberts
    • DE George Uko

Jacksonville Jaguars

  • Signed:

Kansas City Chiefs

  • Signed (press release):
    • DT Hebron Fangupo
    • T Laurence Gibson
    • CB Jeremy Harris
    • DL David Irving
    • TE Ross Travis
    • FB Spencer Ware

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

  • Signed (Twitter links):
    • OL Chris Barker
    • T Blaine Clausell
    • OL Cameron Fleming (Twitter link via Jeff Howe)
    • LB Darius Fleming
    • LB Brandon King
    • WR Nathan Palmer
    • DB Daxton Swanson
    • DT Jimmy Staten
  • Signed and subsequently released:

New York Jets

  • To be signed:

Oakland Raiders

  • Signed:
    • George Atkinson III, RB
    • Mitch Bell, G
    • SaQwan Edwards, CB
    • Shelby Harris, DE
    • Dan Kistler, T
    • Tevin McDonald, S
    • Josh Shirley, LB

Pittsburgh Steelers

  • Signed (Twitter link via Burt Lauten + team transactions page):
    • WR Isaiah Burse
    • LB Anthony Chickillo
    • T Matt Feiler
    • CB Doran Grant
    • TE Xavier Grimble
    • OL Barrett Jones
    • RB Fitzgerald Toussaint
  • Released:
    • RB Dominique Brown
    • OL Reese Dismukes
    • LB Shayon Green
    • DE Ethan Hemer
    • OL Antonio Johnson
    • TE Harold Spears
    • WR Jarrod West

San Diego Chargers

  • Signed:
    • OL Michael Ola (link via Michael Gehlken)

Tennessee Titans

Raiders’ Roster Takes Shape

September 5th, 2015 at 8:24pm CST by Sam Robinson

Despite surpassing Trent Richardson on the depth chart, Michael Dyer couldn’t complete his ascent into regular-season action with the Raiders.

Instead, Oakland rejiggered its depth chart by bringing Taiwan Jones, a former running back, back to his original spot from corner, where he played previously. Jones now occupies the third-string spot behind Latavius Murray and Roy Helu, as the Raiders announced the waiving of Dyer and others in order to dice their roster down to 53.

In addition to severing ties with Christian Ponder, Oakland released Kris Durham and defensive lineman C.J. Wilson.

Here are the rest of Oakland’s cut-day casualties:

  • George Atkinson III, RB
  • Mitch Bell, G
  • Spencer Hadley, LB
  • Shelby Harris, DE
  • Dan Kistler, T
  • Brian Leonhardt, TE
  • Ricky Lumpkin, DT
  • Tevin McDonald, CB
  • Anthony Morris, T (Waived/injured)
  • Leon Orr, DT
  • Brandian Ross, S (IR)
  • Josh Shirley, LB
  • Georgio Tavecchio, K
  • Max Valles, DE
  • Gary Wilkins, DE
  • Devon Wylie, WR

Minor Moves: Wednesday

December 24th, 2014 at 6:00pm CST by Luke Adams

As teams prepare for the final weekend of the 2014 regular season, we’ll round up Wednesday’s minor roster moves in this space, with the latest transactions added to the top of the list throughout the day:

  • The Raiders announced a series of roster moves. The team placed tight end Brian Leonhardt on the IR and activated defensive end Shelby Harris to take his place. The Raiders also added kicker/punter Michael Palardy to the practice squad.

Earlier updates:

  • Filling the final open spot on their 53-man roster, the Vikings have signed running back Henry Josey from off of the Jaguars’ practice squad, tweets Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com. Josey, who has spent the entire season on Jacksonville’s practice squad, will replace veteran back Ben Tate, whom the Vikings released yesterday.
  • Long snapper Charley Hughlett has signed a three-year contract with the Browns, according to his agent Brett Tessler (via Twitter). While Tessler indicates that the signing is official, the team has yet to formally announce it, and will need to make a corresponding move to make room for Hughlett. Johnny Manziel could be headed to IR, but the team also reportedly intends to activate defensive lineman John Hughes, so a second move will be required.

Minor Moves: Friday

September 19th, 2014 at 4:45pm CST by Luke Adams

Here are Friday’s minor transactions from around the NFL, including teams adjustments to the backs of their 53-man rosters and to their practice squads:

  • The Giants have waived offensive lineman Eric Herman, tweets Jordan Ranaan of NJ.com. Herman was reinstated from suspension this week, with the team receiving a two-day roster exemption for him. The Giants have elected to cut him rather than place him on the 53-man roster, but if he clears waivers, he’s a candidate for the practice squad.
  • The Lions are set to promote defensive back Mohammed Seisay from their practice squad to their active roster, says Justin Rogers of MLive.com (via Twitter). The club will have to remove a player from its 53-man roster to make it official though, so the move hasn’t yet been finalized. According to Rogers (via Twitter), the team is still mulling that corresponding move, with the IR a possibility for a couple players.
  • Linebacker Terrell Manning has joined the Bears‘ practice squad, replacing wide receiver Greg Herd on the unit, according to Rand Getlin of Yahoo! Sports (via Twitter).
  • The Rams have signed cornerback Jemea Thomas to their practice squad, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). To make room, wide receiver and returner Justin Veltung has been cut by the club (Twitter link).
  • Defensive end Shelby Harris has rejoined the Raiders‘ practice squad after clearing waivers, tweets Bill Williamson of ESPN.com. The team will have to cut a player to open up a spot for Harris.

West Notes: Cardinals, Dwyer, Raiders

September 18th, 2014 at 7:40pm CST by Zachary Links

Good news for the Seahawks as Marshawn Lynch and Kam Chancellor were each full participants in today’s practice after sitting out on Wednesday, writes Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times. A healthy Beast Mode is always reason to smile, but on the flipside, defensive end Bruce Irvin was forced to sit out with a rib injury. Pete Carrolll & Co. have their fingers crossed for good health for Sunday when the take on the Broncos. Speaking of the AFC and NFC West colliding, here’s a look at news out of both divisions..

  • Cardinals coach Bruce Arians didn’t mince words when discussing the status of running back Jonathan Dwyer, tweets Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com. “Until he’s exonerated he will not be a member of this football team. If and when he is exonerated, I will gladly take him back,” Arians told reporters.
  • Arians said that Chris Rainey was released because Cardinals star running back Andre Ellington is healthy and playing, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. With Ellington playing and averaging more than 5.0 yards per carry, Rainey was no longer needed.
  • The Raiders released defensive end Shelby Harris earlier today but they’re not closing the door on him, as Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com tweets. Head coach Dennis Allen told reporters that the organization likes Harris and says that he could be a practice squad candidate.
  • Pressure is mounting on the 49ers to take action against Ray McDonald and earlier today, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio was grilled by a CNN reporter, as Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee writes.

Minor Moves: Thursday

September 18th, 2014 at 3:57pm CST by Luke Adams

We’ll keep tabs on today’s minor transactions from around the NFL in this post, adding the latest moves to the top of the list throughout the day….

  • The Raiders have parted ways with linebacker Kaelin Burnett and defensive end Shelby Harris, the team announced today (Twitter link). Burnett had previously been placed on injured reserve, so he was cut from that list with an injury settlement. Harris’ release, on the other hand, means that the team opens up a spot on its 53-man roster.
  • The Saints swapped one defender for another on their practice squad, announcing that linebacker Todd Davis has replaced defensive back Pierre Warren (Twitter link). Davis had worked out for the Seahawks earlier this week.

Draft Signings: Titans, Raiders, Jaguars, 49ers

May 20th, 2014 at 8:06pm CST by Zachary Links

We’re dedicating individual posts to draft pick signings from the first two rounds while rounding up the deals from rounds 3-7 in bulleted posts. To keep tabs on all of this year’s draft pick signings to date, be sure to check out our tracker. Here are Tuesday’s latest draft signings from the later rounds:

  • The Titans announced that they have agreed to terms with sixth-round quarterback Zach Mettenberger and fifth-round linebacker Avery Williamson, writes Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean. Mettenberger, whose deal we heard about earlier today, fell in the draft partially due to a torn ACL suffered at the end of his final season.
  • Three seventh-rounders have inked their deals with the Raiders, the team announced today in a press release. Cornerback Travis Carrie, defensive end Shelby Harris, and safety Jonathan Dowling are now officially members of the club, and they’ll receive respective signing bonuses of about $67K, $54K, and $46K, according to Jason Fitzgerald’s figures at OverTheCap.com.
  • Former UCF standout Storm Johnson has signed his rookie deal with the Jaguars, the team announced via Twitter. The 6’0″, 209-pound tailback, who was selected with the seventh pick in the seventh round, has shown quick feet for a player of his size.
  • The 49ers announced that they have signed seventh-round fullback Trey Millard, tweets Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

AFC West Notes: Chiefs, Raiders, Broncos

May 11th, 2014 at 10:17am CST by Peter Sowards

With only six draft choices after the trade for quarterback Alex Smith, the Chiefs had limited resources with which to augment the roster. But, general manager John Dorsey felt fortunate to grab the players available, writes Terez A. Paylor of The Kansas City Star.

“That board, it falls in unique ways if you have a degree of patience,” Dorsey said. “I thought today we were very lucky because each one of these guys fell in their respective rounds, and each time they fell and each time we selected them, the more we got excited.” 

One of those players was Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray, whom the team selected in the fifth round, No. 163 overall. It’s an interesting selection, especially with incumbent starter Smith in contract negotiations with the team, and rumors that the talks aren’t going so well.

“This time, you’re excited about all the guys we’ve got, all the additions to the team,” Smith said, per Randy Covitz of The Kansas City Star. “Time will only tell, It’s time to get to work and get those guys in and see.”

More from the AFC West below…

  • Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie strayed from his usual ways and took players with character risks, writes Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com. Utah cornerback Keith McGill, a fourth-round selection, was arrested in 2012 on suspicion of DUI and possession of stolen property. Seventh-round pick Shelby Harris has been dismissed from two schools and hasn’t played a game since 2012. “It’s twofold,” McKenzie said of the reasoning for drafting players with questionable backgrounds. “One, the selection is always a chance for a player to redeem himself. When we get a situation where you give a player an opportunity, a second chance, especially when, as of late, the issues have not been like it was in the past for them.” 
  • In a separate article, Bair writes that the McKenzie and the Raiders hoped to trade down throughout the draft but were unable to find willing partners.
  • Not wanting to reach for need, the Raiders didn’t take a receiver in the draft, Bair notes. “The receivers at that time (No. 5 and 36 overall) were not high on the board,” McKenzie said. “We’re not going to reach down and take a receiver. I would have liked to (draft) a receiver. I would have. It just didn’t fall that way.”
  • All five picks on day 3 of the draft for the Raiders were defensive players, Associated Press writer Josh Dubow scribed.
  • New Broncos wide receiver Cody Latimer is among the best blocking receivers the team has ever evaluated, Denver GM John Elway said via Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post.
  • First-round pick Bradley Roby should expect to play a key role in the Broncos‘ efforts to return to the Super Bowl, Mike Klis of The Denver Post writes.
  • The Chargers finally drafted a receiver, Baylor’s Tevin Reese, with the team’s final pick in the draft, No. 240 overall, per the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Tom Krasovic.